Dragons Battle Back, Top Lansing for Third Straight Night

Dragons 7, Lansing 5

Click here for the box score

Dayton (R-H-E): 7-13-0; Lansing (R-H-E): 5-9-2

Win: Joseph Menefee (1-2); Loss: Jake Garland (2-3); Save: John Murphy (2)

HR: Dayton: Jay Allen II (8^th, 1 on base in fifth inning); Sal Stewart (5^th, 0 on base in fifth inning).

HR: Lansing: Cole Conn (2^nd, 2 on base in fourth inning).

Dayton, Ohio—The Dayton Dragons battled back from deficits of 3-0 and 5-3, scoring four runs in the seventh inning to defeat the Lansing Lugnuts 7-5 on Friday night. The Dragons have won three-of-four so far in the six-game series.

The Dragons, now 28-27, climbed above the .500 mark for the first time since they were 6-5 on April 17.

A crowd of 8,159 was in attendance at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District.

Game Summary:

Lansing took a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning, getting a two-out, three-run home run from Cole Conn, his second homer of the series.

The Dragons came all the way back to tie the game in the fifth, hitting two home runs in the inning. After a single by Victor Acosta, Jay Allen II belted a home run to left field to make it 3-2. The homer by Allen was his eighth of the year. One batter later, Sal Stewart blasted a home run to left-center field to tie the game. The home run by Stewart was his fifth of the season.

View the Allen home run: https://twitter.com/DragonsBaseball/status/1799243875649016246

View the Stewart home run: https://twitter.com/DragonsBaseball/status/1799244714321019288

“Early in the count I was chasing a little bit, I kind of figured he would go up and in, and I was able to get the barrel to the ball and get it out of here,” said Allen about his home run that started the Dragons on the comeback trail.

But Lansing quickly regained the lead in the top of the sixth inning. Casey Yamauchi’s run-scoring single gave Lansing the lead, and the Lugnuts added another run on a sacrifice fly to make it 5-3.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Dragons battled back again and took the lead. They loaded the bases with no one out on a single by Leo Balcazar, a bloop double by Victor Acosta, and a walk to Jay Allen II. Balcazar scored on an error, and Sal Stewart’s deep sacrifice fly drove in Acosta to tie the game. Cade Hunter then grounded out to the pitcher as Allen alertly raced in to score to give Dayton the lead, and on the same play, Hector Rodriguez also scored on a throwing error when the Lugnuts attempted to throw out Allen at the plate.

Dragons relievers retired six of the final seven batters to close out the Dayton win.

Dragons reliever Joseph Menefee was credited with the win. He worked two and one-third innings without allowing a base runner and struck out five. John Murphy pitched a scoreless ninth inning for the save.

“Early in the count I was chasing a little bit, I kind of figured he would go up and in, and I was able to get the barrel to the ball and get it out of here,” said Allen about his home run that started the Dragons on the comeback trail.

The Dragons finished the night with 13 hits. Five players had two hits including Allen, Stewart, Balcazar, Acosta, and Ethan O’Donnell.

Up Next: The Dragons (28-27) host Lansing (28-27) in the fifth game of the series at Day Air Ballpark on Saturday at 7:05 pm. Jose Franco (0-0, 0.00) will start for Dayton against Lansing’s Mitch Myers (3-2, 3.95). For ticket information, go to daytondragons.com/tickets or call (937) 228-2287.

On the Air: All Dragons home and road games are broadcast on radio on FOX Sports 980 AM WONE. Games can be heard on smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices via the free Dragons Mobile App, or on a computer at wone.com. Games are also available on HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2.